Integrating functional ceramics into microsystems

Micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) have applications in a diverse range of fields. The presence of a diverse range of materials imposes constraints in the design of, and use of fabrication technologies for, MEMS. In addition, the need to structure these materials on the micro-scale introduces additional challenges which need to be overcome. These issues are of particular importance when ceramics need to be incorporated into MEMS. It is of interest to incorporate ceramics into MEMS due to the desire to utilise their functional properties including piezoelectricity, ferroelectricity and conductivity. This paper will present a review of some potential solutions developed by the authors and found in literature, focussing on low-temperature processing of functional ceramics, selective chemical patterning, micro-moulding, and direct writing. The capabilities of different techniques are compared and the relative advantages of each explored.